MMB Legal bats for Gavaskars PMG in signing Virender Sehwag

Professional Management Group’s maiden foray into sports celebrity management has been helped by sports law specialist firm, MMB Legal. PMG which signed on Indian batsman Virender Sehwag for a five year deal will manage all his commercial rights including brand endorsements and other commercial commitments.

Professional Management Group’s (PMG) maiden foray into sports celebrity management has been helped by sports law specialist firm, MMB Legal (MMB). PMG which signed on Indian batsman Virender Sehwag for a five year deal will manage all his commercial rights including brand endorsements and other commercial commitments.

PMG was founded in 1985 by legendary Indian cricketer, Sunil Gavaskar and advertising professional, Sumedh Shah. In 2007 Shah sold his stake in the company to media professionals Sam Balsara and Noomi Mehta, who hold equal stakes in the company. PMG looks to use sports and sporting activities to promote corporate and marketing objectives.

The team from MMB was led by Founding Partner, Mahesh Madan Bhat and sports law specialist, Partner Amrut Joshi who advised PMG on the structuring, drafting and negotiating the player representation agreement.

MMB which is known for its fledging sports law practice was started three years back by NLSIU alum and former JSA Partner, Mahesh Madan Bhat. Speaking to Bar & Bench on the factors behind the growing practice area of sports law, Bhat said, “From a lawyer’s perspective, the focus is not just on sports law but the entire sporting ecosystem. That would include areas related to infrastructure and funding for stadiums, broadcasting, private equity, hospitality, etc. The IPL and the Commonwealth Games has fundamentally changed the view of the sporting fraternity with regards to investing and funding sports in India and has definitely increased the visibility of sports law. The practice area is also perceived to be very glamorous, though that might not always be the case and as such we get a lot of interest regarding internships in this area.”  

Asked whether the majority focus of sports law was concentrated on cricket, Bhat said, “We are seeing that the percentage of cricket related work is gradually decreasing while work related to golf, tennis and racing is on the rise.”